Influence of citric acid on calcium sulfate dihydrate crystallization in aqueous media

The crystallization of Calcium sulfate dihydrate produced by the reaction between pure Ca(OH)₂ suspension and H₂SO₄ solution was investigated at different pH values, temperatures and citric acid concentrations. Crystal size distributions, filtration rates and zeta potentials of gypsum were determined as a function of citric acid concentrations at pH 3.5 and 65°C. The influence of citric acid on the morphology of gypsum was also investigated and discussed. The average particle size of gypsum was reached to maximum in the presence of approximately 2500 ppm citric acid concentration, where the minimum cake resistance and maximum filtration rate were obtained. In the presence of citric acid, various crystal morphologies such as tabular, plate‐like, double‐taper leaf‐like and flower‐like, etc., were obtained. The change of morphology is related to the preferential adsorption of citric acid on different crystallographic faces. (© 2007 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Distribution of metallic ions in a single KDP crystal grown from aqueous solution

A single KDP (potassium dihydrogen phosphate) crystal was grown in a supersaturated solution containing a metallic ion (Al³⁺, Fe³⁺, or Cr³⁺). The growth rate, morphology, and distribution of the metallic ions into the KDP crystal were measured as the ionic concentration and supersaturation in the solution changed. It was found that in the KDP crystal, Al³⁺ and Fe³⁺ were greatly concentrated, but Cr³⁺ was diluted. Complete expressions for the effect of metallic ions on all aspects of the growth of KDP crystal were suggested. The growth rates of (100) and (101) faces were well correlated by the empirical equation and resulted in good estimation of morphology. The distribution of metallic ions into KDP crystal was also correlated by the distribution model. (© 2006 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Structural and spectral studies on gypsum crystals under simulated conditions of phosphoric acid production with and without organic and inorganic additives

In the dihydrate process to produce phosphoric acid, phosphate ore [Ca₁₀F₂(PO₄)₆] is leached with sulfuric and weak phosphoric acids to produce phosphoric acid and gypsum as a by‐product. Crystallization of gypsum occurs as the leaching is taking place. The effect of organic and inorganic additives on the structure and spectrum of gypsum crystals under simulated conditions of phosphoric acid production is studied using x‐ray diffraction and infrared spectroscopy. Structure and spectrum of formed gypsum crystals in the absence of additives are slightly different from the standard gypsum crystals (card No. 6‐0046), which reflect the effect of preparation medium on the crystal structure of gypsum crystals. Presence of additives such as cetyl trimethyl ammonium bromide and 1,2‐dihydroxybenzene‐3,5‐disulfonic acid, Al³⁺ and Mg²⁺ increase the crystallinity of gypsum, while presence of additives such as citric acid and sodium dodecyl sulfate decrease the crystallinity of gypsum. Presence of Al³⁺ and Mg²⁺ as additives lead to the formation of calcium sulfate hemihydrate beside calcium sulfate dihydrate. Presence of sodium dodecyl sulfate as an additive inhibits the crystallization of gypsum and leads to the formation of anhydrite and calcium sulfate hemihydrate.     

Intensities of circular dichroism and absorption bands and the states of <Emphasis Type="Italic">d</Emphasis> ions in absorbing media: II. Tetrahedrally coordinated positions of <Emphasis Type="Italic">d</Emphasis> ions

The factors affecting the band intensity in the circular dichroism (CD) and absorption spectra of tetrahedrally coordinated d ions in an absorbing medium (symmetry selection rules, structural position, and bond covalence) are analyzed. It is shown by the examples of the Cr⁴⁺ ion in Ca₃Ga₂Ge₄O₁₄ crystal and the Fe²⁺ and Fe³⁺ ions in SiO₄ crystal that the symmetry forbiddenness of the transitions from orbitally degenerate states and the covalence of the d-ion-ligand bond lead to changes in the intensity of the corresponding CD bands in a wide range, beginning from zero. It is shown by the example of Ca₃Ga₂Ge₄O₁₄, LiAlGeO₄, LiGaGeO₄, and LiGaSiO₄ crystals activated with Cr⁴⁺ ions that the preferred ion localization position corresponds to a higher effective symmetry.     

State of the chromium ion in soda silicate glasses under various oxygen pressures

Optical absorption and ESR spectra of chromium in soda silicate glasses were measured to characterize the electronic environment of the chromium ion in these glasses. Glasses produced in very strongly reducing conditions showed a broad optical absorption in the wavenumber range of 10 000–25 000 cm^?1 without any ESR absorption, which suggested the formation of Cr²⁺ ions. Glasses produced in air or moderately reducing conditions showed ESR signals suggesting that there are three different states of Cr³⁺ ions, the strongly coupled Cr³⁺ ion pairs, the weakly coupled Cr³⁺ ion pairs and the isolated Cr³⁺ ions in elongated tetragonal sites or sites with lower symmetry. The presence of Cr⁵⁺ ions in glasses produced in air was also suggested. It was indicated that the critical partial oxygen pressure of the formation of Cr²⁺ ions is in the vicinity of P_O2 = 10^?8 atm and that Cr²⁺ ions do not coexist with Cr³⁺ ions homogeneously in soda silicate glasses.     

Optical and magnetic properties of first-row transition metal ions in lead-silicate glass

First-row transition metal ions in lead-silicate glasses of composition: 37.9% mol PbO, 61.8% mol SiO₂ have been studied with regard to the oxidation state and the coordination by means of optical and magnetic measurements. Optical spectra have been recorded at 300 and 77 K. All the observed bands are assigned as being due to d-d transitions in T_d and/or O_h fields. Magnetic moments are of the order of the spin-only values. By ESR measurements we reveal and quantify titanium, vanadium and manganese oxidation states not detectable by the other techniques.It turns out that the various metal ions have the following oxidation states: Ti³⁺ and Ti⁴⁺, V⁴⁺ and V⁵⁺, Cr³⁺ and Cr⁶⁺, Mn²⁺ and Mn³⁺, Fe³⁺, Co²⁺, Ni²⁺, Cu²⁺. The coordination is 4-fold for Ti⁴⁺ and V⁵⁺ and 6-fold for Mn³⁺ and Cu²⁺. Moreover it has been found that Fe³⁺, Co²⁺ and Ni²⁺ are both 4-fold and 6-fold coordinated and that Cr³⁺ and Cr⁶⁺ oxidation states coexist in the same sample.     

Comparative characterization of defects formed by di-and trivalent metal dopants in KDP crystals and the structural mechanism of influence of impurities on face morphology

The structure of KDP crystals doped with trivalent (Al³⁺, Fe³⁺, Mn³⁺, V³⁺, and La³⁺) and divalent (Ni²⁺, Co²⁺, Fe²⁺, Mn²⁺, Ca²⁺, Sr²⁺, and Ba²⁺) cations was simulated by minimizing the energy of atomic interactions. Three types of defects were revealed: isolated defect centers formed by M ³⁺ and Ni²⁺ ions, cluster chain centers formed by M ²⁺ ions with ionic radii exceeding 0.9 Å, and complex centers formed via the replacement of potassium ions by large Ba²⁺ dopants with the simultaneous replacement of some of the phosphorus atoms by silicon ones. The corresponding energies of defect formation are calculated. The surface morphology of the crystal faces is studied. The changes in morphology in the presence of M ³⁺ dopants are caused by their adsorption, whereas for M ²⁺ dopants, these changes are caused mainly by their incorporation into the crystal structure.     

Cr3+‐doped LiNbO3 crystals grown by the Bridgman method

The growth of LiNbO₃ crystals doped with Cr³⁺ ions in 0.1, 0.2, and 0.5 mol % concentrations by Bridgman method were reported. The Cr³⁺ ion concentrations in crystals were measured by inductively coupled plasma spectrometry. Electron paramagnetic resonance had been used to investigate the sites occupied by the Cr³⁺ ions. Two Cr³⁺ ion centers located at Li⁺ and Nb⁵⁺ sites (Cr_Li³⁺ and Cr_Nb³⁺ centers, respectively) were observed. Optical absorption and temperature‐dependence emission spectra of the Cr³⁺ ions were reported. The crystal‐field parameters and Racah parameters of the Cr³⁺ ion defect sites were reported and compared with those grown by Czochralski technique. (© 2005 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Neutron and X-ray diffraction study of superstructure and localized magnetic moments in Cu0.5Fe0.5Cr2S4 and Cu0.5In0.5Cr2S4 compounds

The superstructure parameters for the Cu_0.5Fe_0.5Cr₂S₄ and Cu_0.5In_0.5Cr₂S₄ compounds have been determined by neutron and X-ray diffraction. The localized magnetic moments in different sublattices measured for Cu_0.5Fe_0.5Cr₂S₄ are equal to 3.06 ± 0.17 μB for Fe³⁺ ions in the A-site and 2.76 ± 0.22 μB for Cr³⁺ ions in the B-site (Cu⁺ possess no magnetic moment), which are much less than the magnetic moments for the ions in the purely ionic state.     

The absorption and circular dichroism spectra of langasite family crystals doped with chromium ions

The absorption and circular dichroism spectra of langasite family crystals, La₃Ga₅SiO₁₄, La₃Ga₅GeO₁₄, Ca₃Ga₂Ge₄O₁₄, Sr₃Ga₂Ge₄O₁₄ (red), Sr₃Ga₂Ge₄O₁₄ (green), La₃Ta_0.5Ga_5.5O₁₄, and La₃Nb_0.5Ga_5.5O₁₄, which were doped with chromium ions, have been investigated in the range of 240–850 nm. It is shown that chromium ions are incorporated into the structure of the investigated crystals both in the octahedrally (Cr³⁺ ion in 1a octahedron) and tetrahedrally (Cr⁴⁺ ion in 2d tetrahedron) coordinated positions. The ion ratio Cr³⁺/Cr⁴⁺ changes in a wide range in the crystals studied.     

Study on crystallization of calcium carbonate from calcium sulfate and ammonium carbonate in the presence of magnesium ions

Batch reactive crystallization of calcium carbonate (CaCO₃) from ammonium carbonate ((NH₄)₂CO₃) and calcium sulfate (CaSO₄) was investigated in the presence of magnesium (Mg²⁺) ions. It was observed that Mg²⁺ ions partly inhibited the conversion of CaSO₄ into CaCO₃. When the content of Mg²⁺ was less than 2%, the reduction in conversion rate of CaSO₄ was less than 2%, and the effect of Mg²⁺ ions could be ignored. Effect of impurity on crystallization kinetics of CaCO₃, including the growth rate and nucleation rate, was investigated. The results revealed that when Mg²⁺ ions content was less than 1%, Mg²⁺ could promote the growth of CaCO₃ and inhibit the nucleation process, which was favorable for the filtration of CaCO₃.When the content of Mg²⁺ ions was greater than 1%, Mg²⁺ inhibited the growth of CaCO₃, which resulted in explosion nucleation and led to a large number of particles in the solution, which was unfavorable for the filtration of CaCO₃. Based on the Bransom model, the particle size distribution equations of CaCO₃ were established. X‐ray diffraction patterns and scanning electron microscopy images exhibited the existence of spherical vaterite of CaCO₃ due to the reaction of CaSO₄ with (NH₄)₂CO₃ under the effect of Mg²⁺ ions, which was inconsistent with the results reported in the literatures.     

Absorption,emission and absorption saturation of Cr4+ ions in calcium aluminate glass

Absorption, luminescence and absorption saturation of Cr ions in a calcium aluminate glass are studied. In the absorption spectrum, the absorption bands of Cr³⁺, Cr⁴⁺ and Cr⁶⁺ ions are revealed. The emission spectrum presents luminescence of Cr³⁺ ions centered at 0.82 μm and that of Cr⁴⁺ ions at 1.3 μm. The luminescence signal demonstrates short decay times of 120 ± 10 ns and 300 ± 20 ns for Cr³⁺ and Cr⁴⁺ ions, respectively. Absorption saturation measurements allowed an estimate of the ground-state absorption cross-sections for Cr⁴⁺ ions at 1.06 μm of 0.7 × 10⁻¹⁸ cm² and at 0.69 μm of 1.5 × 10⁻¹⁸ cm².     

Iron redox equilibrium, structure and properties of zinc iron phosphate glasses

Iron redox equilibrium, structure and properties were investigated for the 10ZnO-30Fe₂O₃-60P₂O₅ (mol%) glasses melted at different temperatures. The structure and valence states of the iron ions in these glasses were investigated using Mössbauer spectroscopy, Raman spectroscopy and differential thermal analysis. Mössbauer spectroscopy indicated that the concentration of Fe²⁺ ions increased in the 10ZnO-30Fe₂O₃-60P₂O₅ (mol%) glass with increasing melting temperature. The Fe²⁺/(Fe²⁺ + Fe³⁺) ratio increased from 0.18 to 0.38 as the melting temperature increased from 1100 to 1300 °C. The measured isomer shifts showed that both Fe²⁺ and Fe³⁺ ions are in octahedral coordination. It was shown that the dc conductivity strongly depended on Fe²⁺/(Fe²⁺ + Fe³⁺) ratio in glasses. The dc conductivity increases with the increasing Fe²⁺ ion content in these glasses. The conductivity arises from the polaron hopping between Fe²⁺ and Fe³⁺ ions which suggests that the conduction is electronic in nature in zinc iron phosphate glasses.     

Physical properties of lead iron phosphate glasses containing Cr2O3

The influence of Cr₂O₃ on glass forming characteristics and physical properties of PbO-Fe₂O₃-P₂O₅ glasses has been investigated by Raman and Mössbauer spectroscopies, X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD), Differential Thermal Analysis (DTA), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and impedance spectroscopy. Glasses of the general composition xCr₂O₃-(28.3-x)PbO-28.7Fe₂O₃-43.0P₂O₅, 0 ≤ × ≤ 10, (mol%) were prepared by conventional melt-quenching technique. The compositions containing up to 4 mol% Cr₂O₃ formed fully amorphous samples and their Raman spectra show systematic increase in the fraction of orthophosphate Q⁰ units with increasing Cr₂O₃ content and O/P ratio.On the other hand, compositions containing 8 and 10 mol% Cr₂O₃ partially crystallized during cooling and annealing to Fe₇(PO₄)₆, Fe₂Pb₃(PO₄)₄ and Cr₂Pb₃(PO₄)₄. A high tendency for crystallization of these melts is related to the high O/P (> 4) and Fe²⁺/Fe_tot (≈ 0.60) ratios.Electrical conductivity of xCr₂O₃-(28.3-x)PbO-28.7Fe₂O₃-43.0P₂O₅, 0 ≤ × ≤ 10, (mol%) compositions is independent of Cr₂O₃ and controlled entirely by the polaron transfer between Fe²⁺ and Fe³⁺ ions.     

Experimental and theoretical study of recovery mechanism of impurity effect by the addition of EDTA

The impurity effect by trivalent metal ion such as Al³⁺, Fe³⁺ and Cr³⁺ during crystal growth of KDP is reasonably well documented. If a metal ion is adsorbed onto the crystal surface, it prevents the step propagation relevant to the crystal growth rate. However, this impurity adsorption mechanism is still not well understood. Recently, in our work on the addition of chelate agents, a recovery effect of the metal ion adsorption was discovered. However, its recovery mechanism is not clearly understood both theoretically and phenomenally. In this research, ethylene‐diamine‐tetra‐acetic acid, EDTA, which is the most common chelate agent, was used as a recovery agent. The recovery mechanism was considered from the correlation of experimental data and the interfacial distribution model that we proposed in our former study. Furthermore, quantum calculation of EDTA metal complex can explain the relaxation of impurity adsorption by the addition of EDTA. (© 2007 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Predicting a major role of surface spins in the magnetic properties of ferrite nanoparticles

Room‐temperature magnetization hysterisis measurements were conducted on Mn_0.5Zn_0.5Gd_xFe_(2‐x)O₄ ferrite nanoparticles, with x = 0, 0.5, 1.0, 1.5. The structure of this ferrite is normal spinel where the added of Gd³⁺ ions occupied the octahedral sites and replaces Fe³⁺ ions. The saturation magnetization was found to increase with the initial addition of the Gd³⁺ ions followed by a sharp decrease with further addition of Gd³⁺ ions. The Curie temperature was found to increase up to Gd³⁺ concentration of x = 1.0, and then decreases at x = 1.5. These results were attributed to the surface spins. Because the size of Gd³⁺ ions is larger than that of Fe³⁺ ions, the substitution of Fe³⁺ ions with the Gd³⁺ ions results in surface disorder which results in surface spins. A core‐shell magnetization model was introduced where several factors were combined to explain our results. (© 2009 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

State of Fe3+ ion and Fe3+ −F− interaction in calcium fluorosilicate glasses

The state of Fe³⁺ ions and Fe³⁺ ?F^? interaction in calcium fluorosilicate glasses xCaF₂·(1- x)CaO·SiO₂) (0 ≤ x ≤ 0.3) containing a small amount of iron were investigated by ESR spectroscopy. Two resonances observed near g = 2.0 and g = 4.3 were assigned to dipole-dipole interacted Fe³⁺ ions and Fe³⁺ ions in a rhombic crystal field, respectively. The fraction of Fe³⁺ ions in a rhombic crystal field decreased and that of dipole-dipole interacted Fe³⁺ ions increased with increasing Fe₂O₃ content. It was found that the quantity of dipole-dipole interacted Fe³⁺ ions depends on the negative partial charge of fluorine ions and shows a maximum at 10 mol% CaF₂ (x = 0.2). The maximum is attributed to the largest difference between absolute values of the ionic potentials of ferric and fluorine ions which is caused by the smallest negative partial charge of flourine at 10 mol% CaF₂.     

A square-wave voltammetric study on the diffusivities of polyvalent elements in CaO/BaO/Al2O3/SiO2 glass melts

Diffusion coefficients of various polyvalent ions (Sn²⁺, As³⁺, As⁵⁺, Sb³⁺, Sb⁵⁺, Cr³⁺, Ti⁴⁺, V⁴⁺, V⁵⁺ and Fe³⁺) were measured in melts with the basic compositions of 10CaO·10 BaO·10Al₂O₃·70SiO₂ and 10CaO·10BaO·15Al₂O₃·65SiO₂ by means of square-wave voltammetry. At temperatures in the range of 1300-1600 °C, linear correlations between logD and 1/T were observed. At 1400 °C, the diffusion coefficients obtained are compared with those obtained from other glass melt compositions.     

The study of interactions between iron and vanadium ions in semiconducting barium-vanadate glasses doped with Fe2O3

Semiconducting barium-vanadate glasses doped with Fe₂O₃ ranging from 0.1 to 10 wt% were studied. We made attempts to understand features of an incorporation of the impurity ions into the host matrix. EPR, magnetic susceptibility, dc-conductivity and the Mössbauer effect were investigated.It was established that iron entered into the host as Fe³⁺·Fe³⁺ and V⁴⁺ ions formed associates coupled by dipole-dipole interactions for low Fe₂O₃ contents in the glass. The V⁴⁺?Fe³⁺ and Fe³⁺?Fe³⁺ pairs co-existed for all glasses. The contribution of Fe³⁺?Fe³⁺ interactions increased with increasing Fe₂O₃ content. The deviation from paramagnetic behaviour was observed for glasses with 8–9 wt% Fe₂O₃. It was attributed to presence of fine crystalline magnetic particles.The iron impurity induces no considerable changes in the dc-conductivity of the glass. The concentration dependence of dc-conductivity exhibits a minimum of about 5–6 wt% Fe₂O₃.     

Study of optical and conducting properties of FeCl3 doped PVA polymers

In the present work, PVA and various concentrations of FeCl₃ doped PVA polymer were prepared and optical studies like IR and UV/Visible analysis were carried out on them in solution form also the cast films were examined for their conductance. The variation of optical band gap of PVA polymer with the addition of Fe³⁺ transition metal ion has been determined by the Tauc plot method. It is found that the optical band gap and the transmittance of the polymer solutions being decreased with the increase in the concentration of Fe³⁺ ion, and thus obeys Beer's Law. This is supported by conductivity obtained for these polymers and FT-IR spectra which shows the stretching of the various bonds of the polymer due to the addition of transition metal (Fe³⁺) ions.